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CHAPTER 23

The Levitical Divisions.1When David had grown old and was near the end of his days, he made his son Solomon king over Israel.a2He then gathered together all the officials of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites.

3The Levites thirty years old and above were counted, and their total number was found to be thirty-eight thousand.b4Of these, twenty-four thousand were to direct the service of the house of the LORD, six thousand were to be officials and judges,
5four thousand were to be gatekeepers,c and four thousand were to praise the LORD with the instruments which [David] had devised for praise.
6David apportioned them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.d

7To the Gershonites belonged Ladan and Shimei.
8The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, then Zetham and Joel; three in all.e9The sons of Shimei were Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran; three. These were the heads of the families of Ladan.
10The sons of Shimei were Jahath, Zizah, Jeush, and Beriah; these were the sons of Shimei, four in all.
11Jahath was the chief and Zizah was second to him; but Jeush and Beriah had few sons, and therefore they were classed as a single family, exercising a single office.

12The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel; four in all.f13The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to be consecrated as most holy, he and his sons forever, to offer sacrifice before the LORD, to minister to him, and to bless in his name forever.g14As for Moses, however, the man of God, his sons were counted as part of the tribe of Levi.
15The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer.h16The sons of Gershom: Shubael the chief.i17The sons of Eliezer were Rehabiah the chief—Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very numerous.
18The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief.
19The sons of Hebron: Jeriah, the chief, Amariah, the second, Jahaziel, the third, and Jekameam, the fourth.j20The sons of Uzziel: Micah, the chief, and Isshiah, the second.k

21The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.l22Eleazar died leaving no sons, only daughters; the sons of Kish, their kinsmen, married them.m23The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth; three in all.n

24These were the sons of Levi according to their ancestral houses, the family heads as they were enrolled one by one according to their names. They performed the work of the service of the house of the LORD beginning at twenty years of age.o

25David said: “The LORD, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people, and has taken up his dwelling in Jerusalem forever.p26Henceforth the Levites need not carry the tabernacle or any of the equipment for its service.”q27For by David’s last words the Levites were enlisted from the time they were twenty years old.
28Their duty is to assist the sons of Aaron in the service of the house of the LORD, having charge of the courts, the chambers, and the preservation of everything holy: they take part in the service of the house of God.
29They also have charge of the showbread, of the fine flour for the grain offering, of the wafers of unleavened bread, and of the baking and mixing, and of all measures of quantity and size.r30They are to be present every morning to offer thanks and to praise the LORD, and likewise in the evening;s31and at every sacrifice of burnt offerings to the LORD on sabbaths, new moons, and feast days, in such numbers as are prescribed, they must always be present before the LORDt32and observe what is prescribed for them concerning the tent of meeting, the sanctuary, and the sons of Aaron, their kinsmen, in the service of the house of the LORD.u

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